Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

Tis the season to add a few extra pounds to that lean frame of yours. It happens to everyone, holiday parties, travel, nasty weather; all evils that throw off your routine. There is hope. According to Runners World, just 20 minutes of activity can keep you fit.

Short Tempo Run
Grab your watch and your running shoes (if you packed them) and go for an abbreviated tempo run (2 miles). Do the first half mile (4 minutes) as a warm up. After 4 minutes or half a mile, turn it up to your 5k pace or as fast as you can go for a mile (5-7 minutes). When you reach the 1.5 mile mark or (12 minutes) slow down to a nice easy jog and finish the 2 mile loop.

Home Circuit Training
Remember all those exercises you did as a kid in middle school? 30 seconds of push ups, 30 seconds of sit-ups, 30 seconds of squats, 30 seconds of jumping jacks…repeat. These 2 minute intervalls just using your body weight will elevate your heart rate and burn some major calories.

Shovel or Chop
You can burn several hundred calories swinging an ax or shoveling snow. Be careful, the last thing that you want to happen is to get injured.